The 90-acre Oregon Lavender Farm in Oregon City is caught in a land-use battle.

Owner Jim Dierking has state legislators, county commissioners, neighbors and fellow farmers on his side. Yet, years after a land-use complaint was filed against the farm with Clackamas County, he is stuck between a Legislature that claims the county should help him and a county that says only a state fix is possible. And neither side wants to set a precedent that could erode the state's landmark agriculture protections.

An anonymous complaint claimed Dierking is violating the state-defined exclusive farm use zoning by importing, exporting, storing and distributing his essential oils and extracts. However, Dierking says he couldn't afford to grow 40 acres of lavender and other herbs on his 90-acre property without Liberty Natural Products.

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